Minnesota college cancels baseball season following hazing probe

(Reuters) - St. Olaf College in Minnesota has canceled the remainder of its baseball season following an investigation of hazing committed by players on the team, education officials said on Friday.

The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, a NCAA Division III league comprised of 13 private undergraduate colleges in the state, said in a statement that St. Olaf President David Anderson made the announcement on Friday.

"The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference is saddened by the events that led to the cancellation of the St. Olaf College baseball season, but commends the institution's administration for its swift and decisive action," MIAC Executive Director Dan McKane said in the statement.

Representatives for St. Olaf, the Northfield liberal arts school some 40 miles (64 km) south of Minneapolis, could not be immediately reached on Friday night.

Minnesota Public Radio, citing a letter from Anderson to students, reported that the school declined to provide specifics on the hazing due to its privacy policies and federal law, but confirmed that the incidents involved underage drinking, "ridicule, harassment and public displays of servitude."

St. Olaf was set to begin conference play tomorrow, MIAC said. The team had played 12 non-conference games this season with a record of 6-6, according to the school's website.

(Reporting by Curtis Skinner in San Francisco; Editing by Michael Perry)